Local Radar

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Court Bailiff charged in murder of Johnston man Saturday

web posted November 20, 2006
ECDC booking photo: Dwight Hall
JOHNSTON – Retired police officer and Court Bailiff Dwight Hall, 59, of McCrieght Street in Johnston has been arrested and is charged with murder. 911 dispatchers received a call of a shooting on the 100 block of Aiken Avenue at 6:20 pm Saturday night. When police arrived they found Gregory Jones, 54, of Walker Street, dead from gunshot wounds.  Mr. Hall was taken into custody across the street from the scene.

With scant details being released due to the ongoing investigation what exactly took place remains largely unknown or unconfirmed. According to sources Mr. Hall and Mr. Jones were involved in some sort of an altercation and at sometime during the altercation Mr. Hall escalated the stakes and shot Mr. Jones at least twice at close range, killing him instantly. “I put the time of death at about 6:15 pm,” Edgefield County Coroner Thurmond Burnett said, “they (911) received the call at 6:20 so I gave a few minutes for someone to call.”

Mr. Burnett said the autopsy was conducted Sunday morning at 9:30 in Newberry and he was waiting on the preliminary report to be issued later in the day. How many times Mr. Jones was shot was unknown Mr. Burnett said, though he did confirm more that one wound to the chest area.

Neither Mr. Hall nor Mr. Jones was a resident of the Aiken Avenue home where the shooting took place.

Johnston Police Chief Chris Aston has turned the investigation over to SLED. “It’s pretty standard that SLED comes in when it involves someone connected to law enforcement,’ Chief Aston said, “we want to make sure no one can say we did any favors or treated the case different when it’s over.” Chief Aston said Mr. Hall served as an Edgefield Town Police Officer for nineteen years and also worked with the Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office for four or five years before retiring and serving as Bailiff in General Sessions Court as a noncommissioned officer.

The gun was recovered near the scene and was said to be a 40 caliber Glock, though that has not been confirmed. Chief Aston said he could not comment on the evidence citing SLED being the lead agency. SLED is still interviewing witnesses trying to piece together what actually took place.

Mr. Hall was booked into the Edgefield County Detention Center later Saturday night with one count of murder charged by SLED. It is unknown if additional charges will be sought in the case. Officials with SLED or the Solicitor’s Office were not available for comment Sunday. A Magistrate was called in to obtain the warrant for murder.

A bond hearing will be held this week.

The death marks the second murder in the county this year. Gwendolyn Wilson, 25 was murdered by her husband Maurice Kenneth Wilson, 32 in late February. Mr. Wilson committed suicide in the Edgefield County Detention Center shortly after being taken into custody.
 


 

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